Good news for starting small businesses -- DIY (do-it-yourself) branding is thriving despite economic downturn. According to BrandChannel:

“There is no doubt that these are difficult times for many brands, especially luxury brands. Yet for every hulking, ominous, soul-crushing grey economic cloud there is a silver lining. In the current financial storm, that silver lining is being nailed down, sanded, and painted by do-it-yourself (DIY) brands. Not only are DIY brands standing strong in this turbulent economy, but they are growing.”

If you’re using twitter for your small business, you better read this. The popular microblogging platform has added a paid business accounts.

“Businesses are under no obligation to sign up to a paid account, but doing so will provide them with a “special layer of access”, including feedback and statistics, said Stone. Many big name brands and companies have embraced Twitter as a way of communicating directly with consumers and engaging with customers. Personal accounts remain free.

Stone also confirmed that Twitter would consider signing deals with other companies to license its content and live streams to other sites. He didn’t rule out the possibility of partnerships with news agencies and media organisations, which often use Twitter feeds as part of their newsgathering operations.”

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